McIlroy took a four-shot lead into the final round of the 2011 Masters, but he was unable to win his first major. He shot 80 on Sunday and tied for 15th.

It didn't take long for McIlroy to recover. Two months later, he dominated at the U.S. Open, shooting rounds of 65-66-68-69 to win his first major by eight shots.

McIlroy finished at 16 under, shattering the record for lowest score ever in a U.S. Open.

McIlroy became the No. 1 player in the world when he won the 2012 Honda Classic.

At the 2012 Masters, McIlroy started the third round one shot off the lead, but he faded on the weekend and tied for 40th. Much of the rest of the season was tough as well. He missed cuts at the Players Championship, the Memorial and the U.S. Open, and tied for 60th at the British Open.

McIlroy won his second major at the 2012 PGA at Kiawah Island.

Before McIlroy's 2013 season debut in Abu Dhabi, Nike introduced him as the company's newest staff member with much fanfare, reportedly giving Rory one of the most lucrative endorsement deals in golf history.

Fresh off his endorsement deal with Nike, McIlroy had, by his own high standards, an off-year in 2013. His was 25th in the Masters at Augusta National (left), 41st in the U.S. Open, missed the cut in the British, and finished eighth in the PGA Championship. He still had five top-10 finishes and won $1,802,443 to set the stage for a massive 2014.

Rory McIlroy began 2014 by announcing his engagement to tennis star Caroline Wozniacki, who joined him after his second-place finish at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship in January (left). The two broke off their engagement later that year.

McIlroy hinted his game was returning to form after a second-place finish at the Honda Classic in March. He led through three rounds before faltering with a 74 on Sunday and eventually losing in a three-way playoff. He did manage tohit one of the all-time best approaches into the 18th hole and nearly stole the victory.

Rory recovered from these flowers on the way to his eighth-place finish at the Masters in April. It was his second consecutive top 10 after a T7 the week before in the Shell Houston Open. He followed up the Masters finish with a T8 in the Wells Fargo Championship and a T6 at the Players Championship.

That top-10 finish in the Players Championship featured a final-round 66, including a birdie at 17. "I've been saying the last few weeks, I'm seeing enough really good golf in there to be really positive going into the sort of main stretch of the season," he said after the round. He was right.

After a tie for 23rd at the U.S. Open, Rory shot back-to-back 66s in the first two rounds of the British Open at Royal Liverpool. He held off Sergio Garcia and Rickie Fowler on Sunday by two shots to win his third career major.

McIlroy followed up his British Open triumph by winning the Bridgestone Invitational and then made it three in a row with his win in the gloaming at the PGA Championship. McIlroy edged Phil Mickelson by a shot at Valhalla, the fourth major title for the 25-year-old.

McIlroy nearly won the season-ending Tour Championship, too. He was second, three shots behind Billy Horschel, who pocketed the $10 million bonus for winning the Fed Ex Cup. "He was clutch when he needed to be," McIlroy said. "He played the best golf this week and I'm happy for him."

Rory capped his season by helping Team Europe retain the Ryder Cup in a 16.5-11.5 victory over the Americans at Gleneagles. The final tally from his magical 2014 season included $8,280,096 in official PGA Tour prize money, two major championships and 12 top-10 finishes in 17 events.